Searchable television commercials

1. A method, operable on a server, for providing access to advertising within a media stream, the method comprising: identifying first account balance for a first user, the first account balance having a negative number of points; receiving a request for a commercial that the first user desires to view; determining a point value for the commercial; providing access to the commercial; responsive to playing the commercial to the user, adding the point value to the first account balance; receiving from the first user an assignment of negative points for at least a second user; adding the value of the assigned negative points to a second account balance for the second user; determining a point cost for a selected television program; and providing access to the selected television program if the second account balance is greater than the point cost of the selected television program.

2. A method, operable on a server, for providing access to advertising within a media stream, the method comprising: identifying, by a processing device, a first account balance for a first user and a second account balance for a second user; identifying, by a processing device, a time period associated with the first user not watching content; determining, by a processing device, the time period has expired indicating that the first user has not watched content during the time period; determining, by a processing device, a point value if the first user does not watch television content during the time period; responsive to the time period expiring without the first user accessing, by a processing device, the television content, adding a predetermined point value to the first account balance of the first user; receiving an assignment of negative points from the first user for at least the second user; and adding, by a processing device, the value of the assigned negative points to the second account balance of the second user.